8. The Amazing Spider-Man 2
Release Date: May 2, 2014 I thought The Amazing Spider-Man was a solid and entertaining reboot but one that felt incomplete due to elements of the plot regarding Peter Parker's (Andrew Garfield) parents being cut out in post-production, making the promised "untold story" feel like set-up for a sequel rather than thematic material that was actually explored. Then there's also the matter of Uncle Ben's (Martin Sheen) killer still being on the loose. These elements will hopefully be explored more in depth with The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (or The Spectacular Spider-Man, as many have speculated it'll be called) and we'll get a sequel that takes this franchise to new, web-slinging heights. Just last week, the director of The Amazing Spider-Man
, Marc Webb, signed on to direct the sequel. While Webb isn't a visual stylist in the same way original Spider-Man director Sam Raimi was, Webb brings a grounded and humane touch that's a breath of fresh air in the summer blockbuster season. Now that he's become comfortable with the idea of making a summer tentpole, Webb can jump in with confidence, and ideally not have to butt heads with the studio, and bring whatever vision he has for the next films in this proposed trilogy, to life. He also has the benefit of two fine young actors, Garfield and Emma Stone, who played Gwen Stacy in The Amazing Spider-Man, and is "in talks" to reprise her role in the sequel, who together created a strong romantic foundation for Peter and Gwen. This will probably provide some strong emotional material for the sequel, especially if the film puts a focus on Gwen having to deal with her boyfriend being a superhero and the fact that Peter is always putting his life at risk, it's not just fun and games. This harkens back to Gwen telling Peter in The Amazing Spider-Man that, with her father being a police captain, for most of her life she never knew if he was going to come home alive. She lost her father, Captain George Stacy (Denis Leary), at the hands of the Lizard/Curt Conners (Rhys Ifans) in the first film, which heightens her emotional turmoil. There's also the possibility the film will go down that painful route of bringing to life the iconic and earth shattering "The Night Gwen Stacy Died" plotline to life. The film foreshadowed this with Peter breaking his promise to Captain Stacy to leave Gwen out of his superhero life, meaning that if the Green Goblin discovers Spider-Man's true identity in the next film, it'll put Gwen in danger and it won't end happily for Peter. As many know, the Green Goblin throws Gwen off the George Washington Bridge, and Spider-Man catches her with his web, breaking her neck in the process. It's still unknown whether Gwen will die in this film but considering this is going to be a trilogy, it would seem appropriate to have Gwen's death be the centerpiece of the trilogy, possibly being the end of the second film, leading in to a third film in which Peter has to come to terms with Gwen's death and do battle with the Goblin, as well as growing closer to a certain red head. Norman Osborn was established as a presence in The Amazing Spider-Man, though we only heard about him but never saw him. He'll no doubt appear in the sequel and his arc for the film may result in him becoming the Green Goblin, but he may not be the main villain, which leads to the question of who Spider-Man may face off against this time. In keeping with the more grounded and "realistic" approach established in the first film, the filmmakers may want to feature a less fantastical villain than the Lizard this time around. Mysterio, who uses illusions to cloud Spider-Man's mind, could work in this universe, and also has the advantage of not being featured in Raimi's trilogy. Kraven the Hunter, a big game hunter, who, in the Ultimate Spider-Man continuity, comes to New York to hunt Spider-Man, is also an appropriate fit, and who's not in the typical "take over the world" mold, which we seem to get a lot of in these superhero films. There's also the possibility that instead of there being one big bad as in most superhero films, Spider-Man could face off against multiple villains, with the Green Goblin becoming his toughest challenge. With filming set to begin next year, we can expect some casting updates which will provide clearer picture of where the story is headed.